The Opioid Epidemic: A Crisis Years in the Making

The current opioid epidemic is the deadliest drug crisis in American history. Overdoses, fueled by opioids, are the leading cause of death for Americans under 50 years old — killing roughly 64,000 people last year, more than guns or car accidents, and doing so at a pace faster than the H.I.V. epidemic did at its peak.

President Trump declared the opioid crisis a “public health emergency”on Thursday, though he did not release additional funding to address it. Had he declared it a “national emergency,” as he promised to do in August, it would have led to the quick allocation of federal funds.

The New York Times has been covering the outbreak — from when it started bubbling up in towns around the United States years ago to now, as it decimates communities and families.

Here is a roundup of our best reporting on the epidemic, including short answers to hard questions about it.

Full article here: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/26/us/opioid-crisis-public-health-emergency.html